After giving you a heads-up on the Scout League and rule changes in the Sky Sports Fantasy Football game earlier this week, we now turn our attentions to the player list.
Starting at the back, we begin our series of articles by looking at the goalkeepers.
When assessing our stopper options, it’s important to bear in mind they are now awarded seven points for each clean sheet earned, as opposed to five points in previous seasons. This appears to be an attempt to elevate the premium bracket of keepers into our thinking and bring them alongside the value budget options, who frequently relied on bonus points to boost their potential.
With tier one of bonus returning +2 for five or more saves and the new tier two system earning you +3 points for a minimum of seven stops, there is clearly a case for saving the pennies in this area and selecting a budget keeper who is likely to be kept very busy.
It will be interesting to see who comes out on top, though, of course, the Holy Grail would be to pick a keeper who excels in both areas.
Here are our top ten picks across the price brackets..
Tom Heaton 5.8m
Burnley’s number one has previous; in their ill-fated 2014/2015 campaign, Heaton still managed to keep ten clean sheets and racked up 130 saves, having played all 38 matches. He also made two penalty saves, which are now worth five points apiece. Having registered 20 clean sheets in the Championship last term, he looks the standout option amongst the promoted teams.
Vito Mannone 6.0m
Despite failing to start a league match until Gameweek 18 last season, the Sunderland stopper still managed to earn more bonus points (18) than any other goalkeeper. Mannone’s average of 23.8 minutes per stop was quicker than any number one in 2015/16 and his ability to hoover up the save points makes the Italian a great value option between the sticks as the Wearsiders look to regroup under David Moyes.
Heurelho Gomes 6.1m
The Watford stopper ranked second in the keeper rankings on 134 points last time around, despite conceding the fourth highest number of goals (49) in the top-flight. Delving into the data it’s easy to see why; three penalty saves, 11 clean sheets and 16 bonus points earned from a league-high 127 saves and an astonishing six Man of the Match awards (MoTM) tell the story. With Watford appearing to set up in a defensive 3-5-2 and with saves now further rewarded in this year’s Sky Sports offering, Gomes looks primed for another stellar campaign.
Jack Butland 6.4m
Despite missing the final seven matches due to injury, the Stoke stopper still finished seventh in the keeper rankings in his debut season in the top-flight. Butland picked up ten shut-outs, 16 bonus points and three MoTM awards last time out and, having returned to fitness over the summer, we expect further heroics as he looks to oust Joe Hart as England’s number one.
Fraser Forster 6.4m
The keeper’s return from injury was key to the resilience that saw Southampton deliver 12 clean sheets last time around. Forster conceded just 17 times in 18 league outings in 2015/16 and an average of 33 minutes per save highlights his propensity for picking up points as the Saints prepare for life under new manager Claude Puel.
Adrian 6.4m
The West Ham man is another who offers a steady source of saves. Adrian was joint-fifth for stops in 2015/16 despite missing six matches through injury, averaging a save every 30.1 minutes for Slaven Bilic’s side. The Spaniard saved two spot-kicks last term and has kept out five penalties over the last couple of campaigns – more than any number one in the top-flight.
Kasper Schmeichel 7.0m
Despite producing 15 clean sheets in Leicester’s title-winning season, their keeper comes in 1.0m less than the most expensive option (David de Gea) in goal. Add in 101 saves, which was joint-fifth in 2015/16, and there is a serious case for thinking Sky Sports have slightly undervalued Schmeichel. The loss of N’Golo Kante and European commitments could have a negative impact, of course, and is clearly worth monitoring. On the upside, Schmeichel looks far less likely to be rotated if Claudio Ranieri clicks into Tinkerman mode to cope with the schedule.
Petr Cech 7.5m
In his first season at Arsenal, the Czech was the highest scoring keeper in the game. Cech produced 148 points after arriving from Chelsea, thanks to a league-high 16 shut-outs and as many bonus points, second only to Mannone in save points. His propensity for saves arguably makes the Gunners’ number one the most appealing premium-priced option and with the addition of defensive midfielder Granit Xhaka affording Arsenal a robust presence in the centre of the park, more defensive returns look likely.
Joe Hart 7.7m
The England stopper is likely to remain the safest and cheapest route into a Man City defence which kept 16 clean sheets over the course of last season. Whilst Hart failed to churn out saves bonus (just four points), there’s a hope that new manager Pep Guardiola’s possession-based approach could bolster City’s defensive prospects after they leaked 41 goals in 2015/16. Hart’s erratic distribution is a concern, though – with Guardiola looking for his side to play out from the back, their number one has plenty of room for improvement.
David de Gea 8.0m
A price of 8.0m could be a bargain for a nailed-on member of Jose Mourinho’s rearguard. Man United kept 18 clean sheets and conceded just 35 goals in the previous campaign, the joint best alongside Tottenham, and with no European fixtures to contend with, they have every chance of matching that tally. Like Hart, though, the Spaniard’s main downfall is a lack of saves bonus (six points), which somewhat dents his prospects when compared to the likes of Cech at a similar price point.
Selection Tactics
Goalkeepers tend, on average, to be the lowest scorers of all the positions in the Sky Sports game. With more points earned from clean sheets this season, though, I would expect them to closely challenge and possibly exceed defenders’ relative scores this time around.
Wasting precious transfers swapping keepers has generally been a bad idea, given their low ceiling for points.
This time around, though, there seems more of a viable case to play the fixtures somewhat, rather than pick season-long selections.
Breaking the campaign down into two or three ‘phases’ of play and then selecting your keeper for each portion looks an efficient way to utilise this key position.
Sky Sports Fantasy Football Scout League
We’ve already set up the official Scout League and, once again, are offering £1,000 to the winner.
If you’ve tinkered with your Sky team and are looking to get involved, our league name is FFScout and the code is 8183867.
Finally, we’ve set up a community article to exclusively deal with Sky Sports Fantasy teams. Those looking to get involved with the discussion should click this link.
